The Ender
by SquareRootOf-1
Summary: There's no way to describe Jack Bluestone except "normal". He's never left the Overworld, and knows no other life besides his own uneventful one. His village is a small place where nothing ever happens... until his reality is turned on its head by the girl who falls from the sky. The girl with a pair of elytra and brilliant purple eyes. Who is she? And who sent her here?
1. Prologue

Two pools of lava illuminated the heart of the stronghold, the room dedicated to a portal set with twelve Eyes of Ender. The Nethrian general walked up the stone steps and gazed down into it, brushed one hand along its frame. _So many lives beyond that sheet of starry blue._ He pictured them now, perching on their purpur towers. Eating chorus. Training with their elytra. _They have so much to lose._

From his Inventory, he fished out a glass bottle filled with purple liquid, biting down the urge to grin wickedly as he did so. _(That would be horribly cliche,_ he thought.) So far, the plan had proceeded without a hitch.

This would certainly please... _him._ The masked man who had come into the Nether not a month ago, promising to reverse the dimension's regression into anarchy. If only _he'd_ given the Nethrians his name. _Whoever he is, he certainly knows how to persuade,_ the general mused. After all, he'd galvanized the people of a desperate dimension. Scraped the remnants of the Nethrian Empire back together into an army. Now, the human residents of the Nether hailed him as the one who would bring glory back to them.

The general drank the concoction, instantly transforming into a tall, lanky creature with dark skin and purple eyes. Purple particles flurried around him to complete the disguise. His enderman appearance would help him sneak past shulkers into the Ender capital, at which point a second potion would disguise him as a human palace guard.

As long as he acted the part, the natives wouldn't suspect a thing until his deed had been done and he was long gone.

 _It should not be too difficult._

All he had to do was weaken the dimension beyond that portal, just enough to guarantee an easy victory when the time came. That was the thought he held in his mind when he stepped into the portal.


	2. An Unexpected Guest

A crackle.

A flash.

And the stranger fell from nowhere.

There was the sound of a pop. It was a strange sound, something like what was heard when someone respawned in one of their school games. Jack looked out the window of his room and saw it. A human form, clothed in black. It had more black material covering the entire of its body, leaving its face hidden.

 _Who is that?_

He didn't care if it was dangerous. This person had just appeared out of nowhere.

It was a girl. She wore a black shirt and leggings which both seemed to be some type of armor. On her sleeve was a dragon emblem. Long ebony hair fell in waves over her shoulders. The girl held a bow so dark it was purple, and hanging from her back was a quiver containing fifteen matching arrows. But the strangest thing of all was that she appeared to have a set of silvery wings that glinted in the sunlight.

"Hello?" Jack darted out of his little cottage and slowly approached the strange girl.

She swiftly turned, and her intense purple gaze locked on him.

* * *

The girl tensed up in fear.

A boy was standing a few feet from her, watching her. Instantly she jumped to her feet. The scenery that greeted her was all wrong–no, _no,_ it wasn't supposed to be like this. The brightness of the sky was garish in comparison to what she was used to, and she blinked several times as her eyes adjusted. Behind the boy, she could see a cluster of small houses, all built similarly with a combination of cobblestone and oak wood.

 _Cobblestone? Oak wood?_

What was this place?

* * *

Jack gave a start. The stranger's narrow, electric purple eyes still stared back at his own blue ones. His parents' and teachers' words echoed in his head. _If it's got purple eyes, don't stare it in the face._ Jack quickly turned his head, but then remembered another piece of information. _Anything with irises that color is more than likely from The End. If it's from The End, don't look it in the eye. If you do that, it will attack you._

 _Why?_ Jack had remembered asking.

 _I don't really know, they just try to kill you, so… avoid that kind of situation._ The teacher paused. _Then again, if you've seen their eyes, you're probably in trouble already._

Oops.

"It's okay. I won't hurt you," Jack promised as he held up his hands, trying to conceal his trembling. He turned towards the girl and started, once again, to back away. _Run,_ his inner voice screamed, but something held him in place. _Don't kill me, don't kill me,_ he wailed inside his head instead. _No. Sudden. Movements._

"Where am I?" The girl demanded. "And _who are you?"_

Jack sighed in relief. "Wow. So it looks like staring doesn't provoke you. And I was about to ask you the same question about who you are, actually."

"Oh? Well, you're telling me where I am first before you get anything out of me." She retorted. Although she was acting rude on the outside, Jack could clearly see what flashed in her violet eyes as she glared defiantly back at him: terror.

"You... You're in the Bluestone Village. Southeast Plains."

"Which island is this? Why is the ground green? And, uh, what's wrong with the sky? It's _blue?"_

Jack raised his eyebrows.

"And what is this weird spikiness? It hurts."

"Grass..."

"Where am I? What is this? This isn't… this can't be..."

"Can't be what?" Jack asked.

"This is still The End, right?" The girl sounded hysterical.

"The End… what? You're kidding. You're kidding. You know this is the Overworld. You know it is."

The girl paled. "Oh. Creator." Jack could see the light of fear rekindle in her eyes. "You're telling me this is a different dimension? You're telling me I'm not home? Where is the nearest End portal? I need to go back!"

"Back to where?" Asked a voice behind Jack. He spun around to see his father standing there, a sword in its sheath at his waist. The girl's eyes widened.

"There are _more_ of you…" she murmured.

"She just... fell out of the sky. Sounds like she's an... Ender," Jack stammered.

"Where's the palace?" The girl shrieked. "Where's my family? My home? Oh Creator, I'm sorry, _what is this?"_

 _Wait a second. Palace? Her family? What?_

"Who even are you?"

The girl set her jaw. "Who are _you?"_

Jack sighed. "Okay, I'm not going to let this drag on forever. I'm Jack. That's my dad. And I live here."

"Well, I'm Aza, and I'm definitely not from here."

Aza? Jack would bet a bag of Emeralds that he recognized her name, her face. As if reading his mind, Jack's father spoke. "I think I've heard your name somewhere before."

"Yes... I'm Aza Erebus, the Princess of The End!"

The air temperature seemed to plummet a thousand degrees. Jack remembered something he'd learned from school. _One reality, infinite universes, infinite dimensions._ Everyone knew that. But there were three main dimensions, other than Jack's own, that were well known by the people of the Overworld.

First came the Sky Lands, floating islands in the sky. From the descriptions Jack had heard, it was paradise. Eternal summer. Ruled over by the King and Queen of Heaven and their children, Princess Celestia and Prince Erion.

Second, the Nether. Essentially, it was a vast underground cave system. Home to hordes of nightmarish creatures and the occasional human.

Last but not least, there was The End. Jack remembered a part of his Dimensions textbook he'd read the previous night. Later he would check, and read the passage:

 _Not known for being heaven (like the Sky Lands), or hell (the Nether), The End is the most mysterious dimension commonly known to the Overworld. Like the Sky Lands it is made up of floating islands, but these are made of End stone and suspend over a purple-black Void._

 _This peculiar dimension was, formerly, a place where executions took place. Criminals sentenced to death were pushed through portals and killed by the Ender Dragon, a fearsome beast who attacked any strangers who trespassed on her domain. But one brave man changed everything. This man's name is unknown, lost to the mists of time, but as the legend goes, he voluntarily entered The End and did what was thought impossible._ _He befriended the Ender Dragon, making her realm safe for human civilization. More of mankind migrated to this new dimension. As of the present day, it is a thriving monarchy, ruled by Their Majesties King Athanasius, Queen Cassandra, and Her Highness, Princess Aza._

Jack's dad was first to break the silence. "You're actually..."

"Yes, I am, and I have no idea how I got here." The girl relaxed for a moment, and Jack guessed she was reaching into her Inventory, a magical storage of items everyone had and could access–very useful, although the limit was sixty-four of any item.

A round object appeared in the girl's hand. A pearl, it seemed, but it was dark blue-green. Jack could've sworn he saw arcane symbols glistening where its iridescent surface caught the light.

Jack's father's eyes widened, and he bowed deeply. "Your Highness."

Not knowing what to do, Jack did the same. Thoughts were somersaulting chaotically in his head, and then it hit him. There was a _princess_ in his village! And this princess was from a different _dimension._

 _An Ender._

Jack and his father decided to take Aza in for the time being, unbeknownst to their neighbors. They agreed to keep Aza's identity a secret. If the neighbors knew she was a princess, who knew how many people would swarm the house.

"Your Highness?"

"Please... just call me Aza."

"Aza. May I ask... How did you get here?"

The princess of The End looked down at her feet. "I don't know. All I know is that just a few minutes ago I was doing some practice with my elytra, and then I went home. I passed by one of the portals we have in the palace–the sign above it said _The Overworld._ It was behind bars, of course. I had my Ender pearl in my hand. And I swear one of the palace servants grabbed my arm. I tried to scream but I think his hand covered my mouth. Then he basically threw the pearl–with my own hand. It went through the bars. Into the portal. So now I'm here."

* * *

Aza was interesting company, to say the least.

"Uh... what's this?" she asked, prodding at the mushroom stew Jack's father had served for dinner as if she were afraid it might explode.

"It's mushroom stew. Made with what we harvested from the Mushroom Isles two days ago."

"So it's like chorus?"

Jack remembered the name of that plant. It was the staple food of the Ender civilization, like wheat was for the Overworld. "I guess so?" he replied.

After dinner was over, Jack went to his room to get his homework out and found Aza standing in front of the window, gazing outwards at the dancing colors of the sunset as if in a trance. The Ender was so easily captivated with what had long become mundane to Jack–the farmers sowing wheat in the fields outside, the way wood crackled and popped as it was consumed by flame, and now the dying light of day as it gave way to night.

Aza was truly not from this world. She had grown up in an entirely different dimension. A dimension where people had purple eyes just like the endermen they lived alongside, where they soared across the void on floating ships or pairs of glimmering wings strapped to their backs. Yet for all the differences she still ate and slept and breathed and talked. She was human, like him.

 _Human,_ Jack repeated to himself in silent awe.

* * *

There was a knock on the front door.

"I'll get it," Jack's father called. Jack heard the door swing open. "Hello! Amber? Yes, Jack is in there with... A friend."

Jack's heartbeat quickened. Amber was his best friend. She lived two houses down from him, and he had forgotten she would visit today. What would she say about Aza?

"Jack, you in there?" she tried anxiously when Jack didn't call her name.

Jack sighed. _This is going to be hard to explain._ "Come in!"

The door of the study opened and in walked Amber. Her platinum-gold hair fell in soft curls down her shoulders, and her bright eyes shone greener than the Emeralds the villagers used as currency. She wore her signature hoodie, a soft cotton one dyed pale green with the image of a Slime face imprinted on the back. Her eyebrows shot up at the sight of Aza. With her obsidian-dark hair and purple eyes, she was the obvious black sheep in this field. "Who's this?"

"Amber, this is Aza. Aza, this is my best friend, Amber."

Amber smiled. "Nice to meet you, Aza. Why do I think I've heard that name before? Like, maybe even at school or something..."

Jack stole a glance at Aza, and she gave a tiny, almost imperceptible nod.

"She's the Princess of The End, Amber. This will sound stupid, I know, but... she fell out of the sky yesterday."

Amber frowned dubiously. "Yeah, right."

Aza reached into her Inventory and pulled out her pearl again. Amber's eyes widened at the sight of it.

"Oh, Creator... An Ender... Your Highness..."

Aza held up a hand to stop Amber. "Please. No. I just want to be treated like a normal girl." She sighed as she said this, and it occurred to Jack that this might have been her first chance ever at any kind of normalcy. For the first time, she was in a dimension where she wasn't a part of the Royal Family. She could be treated just like anyone else. Jack realized that she must want that a lot, after being born and raised famous.

Amber was about to say something back to Aza when the words froze in her throat. She stiffened.

"Are you okay?"

She didn't reply. Instead, she slumped to the ground, eyelids fluttering closed.

"Amber!" Jack cried, his heart thumping. "Are you okay? No, no, no! We have to get you to a healer!"

Amber slowly sat up again, her eyes strangely misty and distant.

" _Beware, Aza,"_ She said in a strange, hissing, raspy voice. It terrified Jack to see her like this. Although the words were coming out of her mouth, they clearly weren't her own. Something else was inside her. Controlling her. Speaking through her. " _The forces of the Nether are coming. The end of The End is near."_ Then her eyes closed again, and she once again lost consciousness.

Aza turned to Jack, alarm written all over her face, only to see him equally frightened–but not for the same reason.

"Amber's possessed," Jack worried. "We need to heal her!" Before Aza could say anything more, he bolted out the door, yelling. "Help! Something weird's happened to Amber! Please, help her!"

A door swung open. Then there was another, deeper voice. "All right, show me the patient."

Jack came in again, followed by an older man in a white robe. The village healer was watching Jack intently, listening to him talk about what had happened. "She just suddenly conked out! And started making these weird sounds! I mean, not sounds... she _said_ something! Something _really creepy."_ Jack said.

"Her temperature and pulse are normal. Nothing strange in her eye either. I'll take her to my house for a more thorough examination. No, you cannot come, Jack."

Jack watched helplessly as the healer picked Amber up and carried her toward his home, praying she would be all right.

* * *

Meanwhile, Aza sat against the wall, trying to steady her breathing. _Not true,_ she told herself. _What Jack's friend said wasn't true. It can't be. She isn't psychic or an oracle, there's no way she could know that. She fainted. There could be any number of explanations._ But even as she told herself this, horrible images came to her mind, unbidden.

She pictured the structures and cities of her realm burning. Intricate pagodas and soaring chorus trees reduced to nothing but carbon, crumbling away into the purple-black static of the Void that promised a one-way trip. Her people fleeing their homes, screaming and running from the Nether creatures as their world went up in flames...

 _No No. No. Not going to happen,_ she told herself firmly. _Stop imagining such horrible things._

* * *

The next morning, Jack jolted awake in his bed. He had to check on Amber. The healer had insisted she stay in his house for the night, and Jack couldn't stand not knowing how his best friend was. On his way to the exit, Jack noticed that Aza's door was ajar. Tiptoeing to it, he pushed it open with a finger and saw...

Nothing.

The bed was unmade, pencils and pieces of paper scattered all over the place. All the Ender's belongings gone. No Aza. Then Jack noticed the shouting and rushed outside, almost forgetting about Amber. He didn't see the note stuck to the desk.

 _Gone to find the truth._

 _-A_

A bad feeling settled into Jack's gut. Where had Aza gone? Struck by a sudden thought, he pelted towards the front door, opening it right before he was about to accidentally run into it.

He stopped cold with shock when he took in the sight outside. A large crowd of villagers, eyes all fixed on one thing.

Aza stood in the middle of the street, enveloped by a shimmering purple membrane no one seemed to be able to get through. She stood before what looked like a large frame built with obsidian, chanting mysterious words that sounded like a different language. She held a shard of flint in one hand, and a piece of steel in the other. Jack only realized too late what Aza was doing.

She finished her chant and struck the flint and steel together to create a spark. It caught fire on the obsidian, roaring into a flame. A sheet of swirling violet appeared inside of the frame Aza had built. The _portal_ frame.

Then Aza jumped through.


	3. Overheard

The moment Aza vanished into the portal, the purple force-field that had previously surrounded her flickered and vanished.

Just then, Amber– _Amber–_ ran over to Jack. Jack was too stunned to say hello or ask her about the healer.

"She knew the Nether spell," Amber said hollowly, probably knowing it was rather obvious.

Jack could only nod in response. In school the children had learned that cross-dimensional travel was extremely difficult for most people. Each portal required its own specific combination of building materials. The hardest part, though, was the spell–a long incantation, each only known by few, that usually had to be said in order for the portal to activate.

Apparently Aza was one of the _few,_ at least when it came to the Nether.

"We have to follow her!" Jack cried.

"Jack, are you _insane?"_

"Maybe!"

Before Amber could stop him, Jack went running. "If you go, I'm going with you!" she blurted out. Neither of them could see the portal crumble away to dust behind them.

Jack's shoulder hit the ground, sending a painful jolt through his body. Instinctively he rolled and raised his head.

He seemed to be inside a vast cavern of red stone–it was so large he couldn't see the ceiling, but glowstone hung down from it and stuck through the thick red fog like stalactites. Or fangs. A few yards in front of him was a large, glowing pool of lava that extended as far as he could see.

But Jack didn't notice all this as much as he felt the heat. It was like he was being cooked in a furnace, sweat slicking his body already.

"Ouch!" He cried as another human body–Amber–fell on top of him.

"Where's Aza?" Amber demanded.

Jack looked and saw a black-clothed figure ahead of them. "There! We need to catch up!"

Amber and Jack scrambled to their feet and began to pursue the figure. When they got close enough, Jack cupped his hands around his mouth to form a megaphone shape. "Aza!"

The princess spun around, purple eyes widening with shock. "Jack? Amber?"

"Why did you do that!" Jack cried. "What were you thinking?"

Instead of answering, Aza backed away from them, eyes wide. "What were _you_ thinking? You shouldn't be here. Jack, this place isn't safe! You've never even left the Overworld, have you? Neither of you should have followed me. You'll get hurt, or worse!"

He didn't have any intention to turn back just yet, but when Jack turned and saw the pile of dust the portal had become, a weight sank in his chest. There really was no way home. He and Amber were stranded here.

"I need to find the truth." Aza replied stubbornly. "You either follow me or you don't."

Jack and Amber looked at each other, then at the place where they'd fallen into this dimension. The portal was gone; there was no visible way back to the Overworld. They were both thinking the same thing.

"Yes, I'll come," Jack replied.

"And you, Amber?"

Amber took a deep breath. "Count me in."

* * *

The pattern of day and night was absent in the Nether, so the three travelers would have no way of telling the time or how long they'd been gone. The thought of that worried Jack, and he wondered how his father was doing. Did he see Jack jump through the portal? Did the neighbors tell him? Or was he still wondering what happened to his seventeen-year-old son?

Only Aza seemed to know where they were heading. "I can feel it," she'd say. "It's in that direction."

"What is?" Jack asked.

Aza shrugged. "Whatever it is I'll get the truth from."

"Doesn't this sound like we're making an awful lot of assumptions?" Amber worried. "We're going deeper and deeper into a completely unfamiliar dimension based on a hunch."

"It's not just a hunch," Aza insisted.

Neither Amber nor Jack replied. They were both confused, tired and hungry, their Overworld circadian rhythms completely messed up. Aza, used to life in The End without a sun or a moon, had adjusted her system far faster.

Just as Jack was contemplating this unfairness, a fireball slammed into the ground beside him, setting the netherrack alight. Aza looked up and screamed.

A huge floating creature was drifting toward them, what looked like tears in its eyes. It growled, opened its mouth, and another fireball came shooting at them. It then began to screech–the sound was very much like what Jack imagined a cat in pain would sound like.

"It's a ghast! Take cover!" Aza cried. The three friends scattered in three different directions, panicking. Aza felt the blasting heat on her heels and almost looked back, but didn't.

"What do we do, what do we do!" Aza yelled. She hated this dimension. She didn't think she had ever missed End stone so much.

Just then an arrow whizzed past her head. Aza heard a piercing scream behind her, a scream that resonated through her very bones. She turned around and saw the massive creature dropping out of the air. That same arrow was now sticking out of its side.

Then Jack's voice: "Who are you?"

Aza turned toward his voice and jumped. Standing next to her friend was a boy who looked to be a little younger than them. His brown hair was messed up, and his dark red clothing was tattered, dirty, and even burnt in places. His eyes widened with fear when he saw Aza.

"Don't report me. Please. I beg you."

"Report you?"

"I saved your life!"

"We're not going to report you," Amber said, walking out from her hiding place behind a stalagmite. This scared the boy half to death. "Just tell us who you are and where this is."

The boy frowned. "You don't know where you are?"

"Not really. We know we're in the Nether, but nothing more specific than that."

"How did you get here?"

Aza and Jack exchanged a look. Should they trust him?

"Tell us who you are first." Jack said finally.

The boy stared at the ground. "Promise me. Promise you won't report me. You don't look like you're from these parts, but really, one never knows."

Amber sighed. "We're not spies, and we're not here to catch you."

"Fine. I'm Ahren. And... I ran away."

"Ran away? Where did you come from?" Amber wondered.

"I used to live in a village far away. My mother and father are soldiers. My sister Hestia and I heard their plans... They want to kill me now... And they got Hestia a while back..."

"Wait, your parents are soldiers? You lived in a village? But... The Nether has no society, no structure." Since the collapse of the Nethrian Empire four thousand years ago, the population has been made up of wandering nomads, Jack remembered reading from his textbook. There is no government. The Nether is a primitive, harsh, and lawless dimension.

"The way the other dimensions describe us–we used to be like that, but things changed a few years ago. People started coming together. Forming a ruling system. And... They're not happy."

"Not happy with what?" Aza asked, dreading the answer.

"Their domain," Ahren sighed. "They want to expand it. Conquer other dimensions."

Aza was so pale she could have been a ghost.

Amber frowned. "And what might the first target be?"

"This is one of the things we heard– 'On our path to power, we will claim the dimensions of the universe... Beginning with The End.' "

* * *

Hey everyone and welcome back to The Ender! Thanks for your reviews and continued support!

Just as a heads-up: from this Thursday up until early August, I'll be at summer camp (cryptography–yasssss), so there will be little to no activity on this story as well as my other ones. Because this one was actually written a year and a half ago, updates for this are basically just copy-pasting and some grammar corrections, but I will still slow down in doing them due to my other responsibilities.

Again, see you in the next chapter!


	4. Heaven and Hell

Aza made a small, strangled sound. "It's true," she whispered. "It's all true..."

"Aza..." Jack started helplessly.

"From what I gathered, they want to kill the Ender Dragon, take the land and make the Enders their slaves… all for some Master. When they found out Hestia and I heard, they said it was top-secret info. That even overhearing it was punishable by death. So we ran. But... They caught Hestia. I didn't know until I was far away and I heard her scream behind me. By that time, I was too late," Ahren remembered. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't notice Aza's ordeal.

"Are you sure?" Aza demanded, snapping him out of his trance.

Ahren nodded. "Yes, I'm sure. Why are you..." Then his eyes widened, and he looked Aza up and down, taking it all in, really noticing for the first time without fear or painful memories clouding his mind. The wings strapped to Aza's back. Her black armored outfit. The emblem on her shirt: a black dragon with its tail curled around an obsidian pillar, shooting amethyst flames upward from its opened mouth. Underneath were small words in Aza's native language. _Erebus en Aeterna,_ which translated to _The End is Eternal,_ better known as The End's motto, _End Everlasting._

Ahren took a step back. "You... Oh." He gasped then bowed low, his hand brushing the reddish stone ground. "Your Highness."

"Just call me Aza," Aza replied uncomfortably.

"What must I do to help you, Aza?"

"Is there a way to reach The End from here, Ahren?" Aza asked, desperation creeping into her tone.

Ahren frowned. "There is–sort of. I know the location of a portal that'll take us near the Sky Lands palace. I heard there's a stronghold in the Sky Lands we'll be able to reach–that's where the others plan to enter The End."

Jack's mouth dropped open. If they took that route, they'd be cutting through yet another dimension. In total, two. _Two._ Three, if The End counted.

"How far?" Asked Aza.

Ahren shrugged. "About a week's travel, Overworld time, if I'm right."

" _If?"_

"It's my only chance to get home," Aza pointed out. "Besides, I need to save the Enders."

"How do we know we can trust _Ahren?"_ Amber asked suspiciously. Her tone betrayed how much she wanted to believe Ahren was genuinely trying to help them, but she had a point there.

Ahren sighed. "I'm not planning to kill you or sell you out or anything. That stuff about the soldiers and Hestia–you think I was making that up? You think I'd make up my sister's death? There's no way for me to prove I'm on your side, I know. But I'm asking you to trust me."

Aza turned to Amber and Jack.

"I think we'd better believe him," she murmured. "Right now, it's our only chance."

* * *

On what Jack estimated was day six, the three of them came upon a huge structure. Its dark brick columns loomed from the everpresent Nether fog, crooked yet imposing. Scorching lava roiled below, lapping at its supporting columns.

Jack stared in awe at the Nether fortress. He'd learned about those in school, of course, but had never expected to see one in real life. Nevertheless, there it stood before him: a four-thousand-year-old monument to the Nethrian Empire and what the people of this dimension had achieved. Its makers had been dead for millennia, their dynasty long over, yet this building had stood strong up until the present day. With a shudder, Jack realized it'd probably also outlast the Ender civilization if they didn't get Aza back to her home quickly enough to warn them.

"The portal's in there," Ahren announced.

"Are you sure? You only heard the plans _once,_ didn't you?"

"They said it was at the fortress. This is the only one within five hundred miles of the village."

"Five hundred miles," Amber looked at him in awe. "You've traveled really far from your home, Ahren."

Ahren just shrugged. "Something I've learned about being a fugitive is that there's only one direction I can run in: away." Reflected in his eyes, Jack could almost see the pain his journey had brought upon him, fire and brimstone.

"If the portal is in the fortress, it's going to be heavily guarded, isn't it?" Aza pointed out, changing the topic back to the mission at hand.

"No," Ahren explained. "The portal is a secret, as are many other things the soldiers discussed. Sending guards to this place would make it stick out like a sore thumb. You might as well put up a beacon."

"So… there's going to be no resistance?" Jack asked, incredulous. _No way. That's too good to be true._

"Well, there'll still be wither skeletons and blazes, like in every other fortress. It blends in, but it's still guarded."

Aza muttered a curse under her breath. "Is there another way for us to get through?"

"The people of the Nethrian Empire built this thousands of years ago to be a military base. Just in case enemies got in, they added emergency escape tunnels deep inside the foundation of the fortress, which have entrances in all the rooms and also lead outside. Every entrance and exit is only large enough for a human crawling on hands and knees. Blazes definitely won't be able to fit through, let alone skeletons."

"You're a genius, Ahren!" Amber cried.

"Thank the Creator you heard those plans," Aza said, before realizing what that implied. She covered her mouth with her hands. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it that way."

"S'okay, I know what you mean. Let's go. The nearest tunnel entrance is most likely there." He pointed at a place on the fortress where it had crumbled away, leaving a pile of broken bricks covering the broken end. The four of them ran to the place he pointed and immediately started to dig. The bricks were even heavier than Jack had expected, perhaps due to the Netherrack they had been smelted out of. Some of them glowed with heat from their cores as if they were cooling embers.

"There _is_ a tunnel here," Jack exclaimed. Ahren, Aza and Amber looked and it was true–he'd unearthed the beginning of a passageway. With all of them working together, they quickly cleared the remaining rubble away.

"Are you sure we want to do this?" Amber questioned. "I mean, there could be any number of nasties in there. It's been sitting there for four thousand years, untouched."

"They'll all have died out by now. Any creatures small enough to breed and thrive in those tunnels probably won't be a problem."

"You said _probably,"_ Aza noted.

Ahren shook his head. "We're going to have to risk it. Think about it: which route would you rather take, one that _might_ have some rats or one that's patrolled by blazes?"

Aza shrugged. "Good point."

"Then we take the tunnels," Ahren concluded. He pulled a torch out of his Inventory and stepped into the dank passageway, instantly flooding it with warm light. Nervously, the others followed him and they started walking. They did, indeed, encounter a few rats, but they squeaked in alarm and scampered away as the humans approached.

"What do those rats even _eat_ in here?" Jack wondered, not sure if he really wanted to know the answer.

"Dead blaze remains," Ahren replied. Jack stared at him, but the look on the Nethrian boy's face said that he wasn't joking.

"Ooh-kay," Amber laughed a little. "Maybe a little too much info there… hey, a chest!"

Ahren rushed to it, making his torchlight waver. "Stand back," he warned. "Ancient dust isn't something you want on your clothes, trust me." He bent over and lifted the lid, which made a creaking sound so loud Jack stuck his fingers in his ears.

"Weapons and armor," Ahren reported, a little giddy. "Come see."

Jack peered into the chest. He could see a chainmail chestplate glinting faintly from where it was draped over a pair of gleaming knives and an iron helmet. Although the loot was coated by a thin layer of dust, enough shine showed through to betray how valuable these items were.

"I'll take the knives," said Ahren. Then he looked around. "If none of you guys need them…?"

The group raised no objections, so Ahren picked up the wicked-looking blades and slid them into the invisible storage space of his Inventory.

"How about the armor?"

"Aza, you can have the chain mail," Ahren said. "Jack or Amber… oh wait… that'll leave one of you with nothing… then I'll give a knife to someone else…."

Aza shook her head. "Keep it all for now, Ahren," she told him. "We can distribute the stuff later."

Again, no objections. Seeming a little guilty, Ahren took the rest of their findings. Wordlessly they continued on their path.

Soon, a strange sound was audible from above ground: a wheezing, rasping noise.

"What is that, Ahren?" Jack asked, more than a little scared.

"Probably blazes breathing. They're not exactly the quiet type of creature."

"What if they sense us?" Imagining a blaze blast through the tunnel roof with a fireball, Jack looked up.

Ahren shook his head. "They won't. Normally they'd be able to detect our heat signatures, but they shouldn't be able to considering how far below them we are."

"Right…" That didn't make Jack feel any better.

Before long, they reached what seemed like a dead end. However, Ahren murmured, "This is the way. It _has_ to be. I can feel it."

Placing one of his hands on the wall, he waited. Jack and Amber were exchanging dubious looks when suddenly, out of nowhere, pistons clanked and a secret door opened, revealing a portal of polished quartz. No incantation was required–a blue vortex already shimmered in the frame, waiting for them.

Together, the four of them stepped through the Sky portal.

* * *

Hey everyone, I'm back to work copy-pasting!

For the record, cryptology camp was fun, if mind-bendingly hard at times.

I'd like to specially thank Watcher321, darkwish989, The Triple Chocolate Fox, Trueaeliixander (sorry if I spelled that wrong), and TemUltimate for leaving me reviews!


	5. Islands in the Sky

The world rippled and waved around Jack, and it quickly became disorienting. Blue swirling filled his vision, and then he was standing somewhere else. Somewhere much more beautiful than the Nether. In fact, if Jack allowed himself to use his imagination, he could almost fool himself into thinking he was back _home._

Almost, but not quite.

The grasses here were too verdant for the Overworld, the sky too brilliant blue. And when he looked far enough toward the horizon, Jack realized that the land dropped away far more abruptly than it was supposed to. _These are floating islands,_ he realized. _No way. I'm standing on floating islands._

"This place is... wow," Amber breathed.

"It's like in the books," Aza added, slightly giddy. "They taught us about other dimensions, and this one is a bit like mine–the islands defy gravity. I never thought I'd actually see it. Not so soon, at least. Maybe... maybe when I was queen. But not now."

Ahren fidgeted, uncharacteristically nervous. His three companions turned to look at him.

"I'm in enemy territory," Ahren reminded them. "As hard as I fight it, it can't be avoided–I belong to the Nether. This place… this is Heaven, remember? I don't know if this is the best place for someone like me. This is…"

His voice died in his throat. Instead, he took a deep breath, as if to muster his courage. "It doesn't matter. I'll stay with you, no matter what. You're my friends now. Besides, what do I have waiting for me back home? More people trying to kill me, that's what. I'm coming."

...

It wasn't long before a few Sky Landers spotted Jack and his friends. The group of natives made their way toward them, and as they drew closer Jack could see that there were two men and a girl.

"Who are you?" The taller man demanded. "And explain _that."_

He gestured at a point behind the teenagers, and when Jack turned around he realized that a Nether portal stood behind them. Strangely it hadn't deactivated on this side.

Ahren was pale as a ghast. As soon as the Sky Landers took notice of him he started trembling. A bead of sweat wound its way down his face as he held up his shaking hands. "We... we come in peace," he stammered. "We, uh, we mean you no harm."

"A couple of strange children from the Nether," the other man muttered. "Give up your possessions. We're going to have to take you to the king and queen. Especially you, Nethrian. I'll die of shock if they decide to spare you."

" _Give up our possessions?"_ Jack echoed.

"We have to make sure you're not planning to harm us. No weapons or suspicious objects allowed," the girl clarified. She eyed Jack's sword. "You're definitely going to have to give us _that."_

Jack was tempted to protest. The sword had been a gift from his father when he started combat training, and was the only real piece of home that he had with him. Giving it to the Sky Lander would be like surrendering his small piece of the Overworld. He didn't want to risk it–what if these people were lying thieves?

"So? Are you going to cooperate or not?"

Jack, Ahren, Amber and Aza all stayed silent.

The second man huffed. "Have it your way." He pulled a knife out of his Inventory, and his friends did the same. Although he did not take one step toward them, he eyed the teenagers. His calm stillness terrified Jack more than any attack would.

"Maybe we can take them," Amber muttered.

Jack shook his head. "Two grown adults and a girl who's _definitely_ older than us. I doubt it. Besides, Ahren isn't exactly at his full strength, and if we fight they'll definitely hurt him. We'll have to submit."

Beside them, Ahren held up his shaking hands. "Okay, okay!" He tossed one of the knives onto the ground and proceeded to empty his pockets and Inventory, which spat the rest of the equipment they'd found in the Nether fortress, a small chunk of glowstone and a cracked Nether brick onto the verdant grass.

The taller man nodded, although he kept his knife in his hand. "Now you three."

 _I guess we have no choice,_ Jack thought, exchanging a look with Aza. He opened up his Inventory, and one by one the belongings he'd been carrying materialized out of thin air and fell onto the ground: a shovel. An extra tunic. Several shrivelled apples. His redstone textbook. A small drawstring pouch.

 _Redstone textbook?_ Jack groaned inwardly. _How'd that get in there? I hate redstone and now it's coming back to haunt me!_

"What is that?" The girl demanded, jabbing a finger at the pouch.

Jack bent to pick it up so he could open it and show her the contents: a few large green crystals. "Emeralds," he explained. "Overworld currency."

The girl laughed dryly. "We've got a lot more _real_ emeralds here than any Overworld kid could hope to have. Don't think you can buy yourself out of this."

"I'm not planning to," Jack replied.

Amber's Block Hunt gear fell out of her Inventory, shining in the grass. Jack was surprised she had it–the chain mail armor and radar scanner, only useful in games, practically put a bully target on her back. The other hunters always seemed to be okay with helping themselves to radar hunters' kills. _Battle training_ _games and Block Hunt–those feel a lifetime away,_ Jack mused. _Back when bullies were the biggest problem in our lives._

Aza took a preserved chorus petal, her silvery wings, and a rolled-up End flag, seemingly summoning them from thin air. She set them on the ground.

The second man shook his head. " _Empty it."_

Aza stared him down with her electric-purple eyes. Jack shuddered–he wouldn't want to be on the receiving side of an Ender's glare. The man didn't react. "I said empty it. Now."

With a sigh, Aza let her Ender pearl fall onto the ground. Like other Enders, she'd been born with it in her Inventory–to the people of her dimension, it was one's most prized possession and a physical manifestation of their identity. _No wonder she didn't want to give it up,_ thought Jack.

"Right," the girl nodded in approval, picking up the assortment of personal belongings on the ground and stuffing them into her own Inventory without much ceremony. "Let's go."

...

The quartet entered the palace, flanked by two stiff-looking guards. Because the Sky Lands were made up of floating islands, they'd had to cross many elaborate bridges in order to keep from falling into the Void.

("These people should seriously learn how to use elytra," Aza muttered, although her sarcastic attempt at humor did little to break the tension.)

Queen Proserpina and King Ardan of the Sky Lands eyed the strangers from their thrones. Their faces were impossible to read–suspicious? Curious? Hostile? _Indifferent?_ The king spoke first.

"So. You claim you are here to seek the End portal?"

"Y-yes, your majesty," Ahren squeaked. He had lost his nerve the moment he stepped through the Sky portal, and with every minute he spent in the Sky Lands, his confidence seemed to have been slipping farther away from him.

"How about you?" The king gestured to Aza.

"I…" Aza reached into her Inventory and pulled out her pearl, which she hadn't allowed the girl to take. She held it out for King Ardan to see. "I'm Aza. Princess Aza Erebus of the End dimension."

The king and queen exchanged a look.

With a start, Jack realized he'd never heard Aza's last name before. She'd mentioned it once–every Ender shared the same surname–but he never realized it was Erebus, which also meant The End in their language. It gave _Erebus en Aeterna_ a whole new meaning.

"How do we know it's you?" Queen Proserpina asked Aza at last. "How do we know you're not an impostor who's stolen the Ender Princess's pearl?"

"Every Ender has their own pearl," Aza explained, "which is magically tied to them. The pearl will always return to its owner." To demonstrate, Aza threw her pearl a very short distance, maybe only two feet from where she was currently standing. To Jack's shock, it shattered on impact.

A split second later Aza disappeared and rematerialized where her pearl had broken, an aura of purple Ender particles dancing around her. She held out her hand and the shattered pieces flew to it, piecing themselves into a whole once again. Jack's eyes widened, but the queen merely nodded. "Well then. Welcome to the Sky Lands, Princess Aza... Erebus. I apologize about the somewhat harsh ways you and your friends were brought here, but they were necessary–a precaution, if you will. I am sure you understand."

" _How_ did you get here?" King Ardan prompted.

Ahren gave a tiny nod. So did Aza and Amber. Without hesitating any longer, Jack let the entire story spill from his lips.

"Well," the king sighed when he finished. "A very strange story, and hard to believe."

"It's true–" Amber started, but King Ardan held up his hand to silence her.

"However, I _do_ believe you," he told them. "It would be foolish to ignore a potential threat like this. If the Nethrians are to pass through the Sky Lands on their way to The End, they will meet resistance from our armies. Be assured that if they cause destruction or manslaughter on my islands, most of them will be dead by the time they reach yours."

"Uh, thank you, Your Majesty," Aza murmured.

"As for your way home?" the king paused thoughtfully. "Our dimensions have been intimately connected for centuries, which is why I became concerned about Nethrian attacks. The islands here contain many strongholds. Travel to the heart of one, and–provided it has not been deactivated–an Ender portal will be found."

"To most, the strongholds are labyrinths," the queen added, "near impossible to navigate, let alone escape. But you, Aza Erebus... Ender blood flows through your veins, does it not? With the call of The End guiding you home, I doubt someone you would face much difficulty."

"When the next group of soldiers return from their rounds, I will send them with you to the strongholds," King Ardan decided.

"Thank you," Aza said again, more quietly.

Sent out to wait in the main room of the palace, Jack and Amber lingered together. They were still not accustomed to the sheer grandeur of the place, compared with their grimy cottages back in the Overworld. At home, they were lucky to get lapis lazuli for enchantments. Here, the cerulean stone was so abundant that the ceiling was adorned with it. It occurred to Jack that nowhere in Bluestone Village would such glamour be seen as anything but a massive waste.

 _The Sky Lands are nothing like home. Neither was the Nether._

He has been so lucky, he mused, to see not one but three dimensions in his life. That number would go up once again once he went with Aza to The End. What felt like both a day and a lifetime ago, he had been at home in the Overworld, sheltered, safe. Now he was standing in a palace built of gemstones, in the company of an interdimensional fugitive and a princess.

 _How could somebody like me have possibly ended up with these people, in a place like this?_

* * *

Hello everybody. Long time no see! Sorry for not posting in so long–a ton of stuff has been happening, and my work load has been steadily increasing. It's just copy pasting, I know, I know, but I tend to edit the chapters after I paste them on, and that takes time. Sorry again, guys.

If you also keep up with my Undertale story Shattered, know that I'm working on Chapter 45 right now.

Of course, I'll keep posting up until the end of both these stories. High school begins next year, which means even less time to write. but I'm confident that I'll still be able to squeeze in my work.

And wow... pardon the fangirl moment here, but _wow._ It's been two years, and that feels like such a long time. I've surprised even myself with how loyal I've remained to the Undertale and Minecraft fandoms, how much they continue to excite me. I'm getting increasingly sure that these two are fandoms I will never truly leave. My only hope is that even very soon, years from now, there'll still be people here to read my fan fictions! Heh. Thank you all, thank you Minecrafters, for sticking with me. Despite what some people have said, generalizing Minecraft fans as cringey children and shaming those who still like it, I still stand with Minecraft without shame. It's so rewarding being a part of your fandom, and I feel nothing but honored.


	6. Bring Me Home

The soldiers spoke little, leading Jack, Aza, and Amber on their way to the stronghold. Ahren's absence, the strange negative space next to Jack where his friend should have been, was unsettling at best. Back at the palace, he had elected to remain in the Sky Lands to help hold off the Nethrians when they arrived. Although Aza offered to bring him home with her, he had quietly refused, insisting that his place was at the front line of defense when his home dimension did attack.

They came to their destination after a shorter journey than Jack had expected–maybe two or three hours' walk, at most.

Jack had to admit he had expected something grander. After all, this was a _stronghold,_ a gateway to another dimension. Instead, the Sky Landers had to point it out to them: a hole in a mountainside, almost pathetically unremarkable compared to all it contained. Barely anything could be seen of it except a flight of mossy cobblestone steps, leading down into the ground.

"We cannot accompany you any farther," the lead Sky Lander said. "You are on your own. Best of luck." With that they were gone.

"Let's go," Aza prompted.

"This doesn't look safe," Amber worried.

"They know they took us to the right place. If it was a significant danger, the royals would have let us know, I think."

Jack and Amber filed down the corridor behind Aza. When they were far enough underground, the light from outside faded into nothing. The darkness around them was tangible, stifling. Jack gave in to its lightless embrace, almost marvelling at the utter lack of something, of _anything,_ before his eyes. Even the air around him pulsed with the promise of secrets untold. Smells wafted into his nose: dangerous smells, bitter smells, ancient smells. Amber's breath behind him was magnified, the slightest disturbance in the air racing down the halls. Here was a point of intersection, an interdimensional romance Jack's mind could never fully fathom.

Ahead of them, warm light flooded the claustrophobic space. A torch had been mounted to the wall. Its flames licked the stone brick, revealing patches of moss and spidery cracks. Though it took away the mystery of the dark, the dancing torchlight was enigmatic in itself. Branching out from the main hallway Jack could see numerous other passageways, twisting outwards not unlike the roots of a tree, but Aza ignored them all without hesitation. She led them confidently, gravitating toward her home. It was almost as if she were in a trance.

They arrived at a dead end, and Jack shot a glance at her uncertainly. "Are you sure you took the right paths?"

"It's this way. It has to be." Aza placed her hand on the solid wall in front of them, as if feeling for answers. Finally, something gave under her fingers: the wall was false, its bricks easily pushed out of the way.

 _Amazing._

The magnetic instincts inside her growing stronger than ever before, the Ender princess drew in a breath as they reached the most hidden room in the stronghold. The entrance was a grate of iron bars. Beyond them, she could just see the two pools of lava on either side. Farther into the room, Aza could see an even bigger pool of lava, right under the portal frame.

It was home or death. In silence, the three of them stepped into the room.

Just then, a peculiar rattling sound reached Aza's ears. She glimpsed a large silver bug scuttling towards them, sporting bristles on its back and large black eyes. She bit back a shriek.

"What is that?"

"A silverfish," Aza sputtered. "It smells Ender blood."

Indeed, the insect scuttled faster when it saw Aza. More quickly than she had anticipated, it jumped onto her leg and bit her.

"Ow!" Aza exclaimed. The pain sending a sudden rush of adrenaline through her body, she pulled her bow from her inventory and smacked the creature over the head. It fell onto the floor, stunned, and Aza took that chance to shoot it.

Small puffs of smoke could be seen all over the room. From each puff another silverfish emerged. They all made a beeline for her.

"They're all coming at us."

Realizing the huge mistake she had made, Aza scrambled up onto the portal frame, and her friends quickly followed suit.

There was no ceremony in re-entering The End. No dignity like Aza had hoped. Instead, she gave herself to the beckoning portal with the frenzy of escaping prey, shaking a silverfish off her foot even as she fell into starry blue.


	7. Home?

The next thing Jack knew, he was standing on an obsidian platform. Jack's head spun when he realized that there was nothing to catch them beyond the edges of the platform–nothing but void, extending down into infinity. Amber reached for his hand and he took it.

In front of them was a massive island of pale yellow stone, hovering suspended in a purple static void. A huge spiraling complex of buildings stood on the island in the distance, ringed by twelve enormous obsidian pillars and bathed in the ethereal light of End rods. Jack took in a breath–he could see pagodas connected by curling skyways and steep staircases. The sketches in his textbooks hadn't lied about the End city's grandness.

"We're really here." Amber gave a disbelieving laugh. "Just look around. It's The End, Jack. This place is real. I mean, I always knew it was real, but I never thought..."

"I never thought I'd ever actually be here," Jack agreed.

Aza stood on her own, looking around herself with awe–taking in the familiar surroundings, breathing in the familiar air. The only reality she had ever known up until a few days ago. The Overworld, the Nether, and the Sky Lands had certainly been an adventure, but this. Only this dimension could be hers. The blood of The End ran in her veins.

She was home.

Somehow, she managed to keep herself from flat-out sprinting down the strip of floating land that connected them to the island, allowing Jack and Amber to follow her at a walking pace. Now the idea of showing her home to her new friends filled her with pride–a kind of giddy enthusiasm that made her feel like she was walking on air. For the first time since her expulsion, she felt truly alive again.

"See that main End city? That's the capital. The palace is the central building, a small group of pagodas in the middle there. We can reach the other islands by ship or by elytra. At the top of each of those obsidian pillars is an Ender crystal–that's how the Ender Dragon gets her powers. Wait until the dragon flies by." Aza grinned. "She nests on the far side of this island, in a cave in the End stone. We can't see that from here. I have to show you around after I get back to my parents. You won't believe it."

"I already can't believe it. Aza, this is amazing," Jack breathed. "Nothing I've ever seen in the Overworld could compare to this." Even as Aza spoke to him, he couldn't keep his eyes from straying, roaming hungrily all around him to take in the new. He realized that this was the first time he had witnessed civilization in another dimension. He wasn't just stepping inside a king's throne room or stealing his way through the land as a fugitive; he was here, standing in the Ender capital, watching completely ordinary people of a foreign culture going about their daily lives.

Around the base of the End city, merchants had set up their stalls. "Elytra repair! Hot chorus cakes!" they yelled out. When they saw Aza, though, their calls changed.

"Your Highness! Welcome! Welcome back," they cried. "Thank the Creator. Someone must let the King know–Her Highness has returned!" Even the shoppers at their stalls took up the cry, their good news quickly rippling outward. It would reach the palace even before Aza herself did.

Aza accepted the welcomes with gratitude, even embracing one of the merchants enthusiastically. Could Jack see tears in her eyes when she looked back up? She turned back to the Enders around her, trying to address each person who spoke to her. "I've missed you so much. I'm glad to be back. No, I don't know what pushed me through the portal yet. You want to know where I was? Oh, Creator, that's such a long story."

All the while Jack and Amber stood back. In the frenzy that Aza's arrival had caused, none of the Enders had even looked in their direction.

"Aza?" This was a new voice, older and more regal somehow.

A couple stood in the doorway of the Ender city, arms linked. They were both in their early fifties, clad in long black and purple robes. They wore no crowns, no jewelry–no elaborate mark of royalty was needed to identify them as the King and Queen of The End. Like all of the the citizens around them, they had skin as pale as the End stone beneath their feet, and their eyes were amethyst purple. Streaks of silver adorned their dark hair in a way that only served to accentuate their majesty. Jack could see shades of Aza in both her parents.

"Dad! Mom!" the princess cried, seeming for all the world like a child again when she flung herself into the King's arms. The family exchanged words Jack was too far away to hear before they broke from the embrace, the Queen clutching Aza's hand tight as if she were afraid she would lose her daughter again if she let go.

"Wait," Aza said. "There are two people I'd like you to meet. Jack? Amber?"

The royals and the group of Enders that had gathered followed her gaze, and Jack found himself looking back into dozens of pairs of amethyst eyes. He and Amber were immediately singled out, their light-colored eyes and hair both oddities in this dimension of void and obsidian.

The crowd moved aside for him as he and Amber picked their way over to Aza, acutely aware of the stares they were getting.

"This is Jack, and this is Amber. I met them in the Overworld when I fell."

The King looked both of them over, his expression bordering on wonder. "Come with us," he decided, gesturing for them to follow him away from the curious Enders into the entrance of the palace. "I sense that we have much to discuss."


End file.
